ParkMagic takes the payn out of pay 'n' display

Forget coin meters and time-stamped windshield stickers. A new service called Mobile Parking Service, launched this week by Irish company ParkMagic, in collaboration with Verizon's Skytel subsidiary, brings parking into the digital age.

Rather than digging around for coins down the back of the passenger seat, drivers use the service to pay for parking by making a call from their cell phones, which debits a prepaid account. A message is then sent wirelessly to a digital display on the car's dashboard to show the parking time remaining. The service, which will be coming to cities across the U.S., has been up and running in Ireland since last year.

It sounds like a good idea, but we're not sure how it will fly with parking attendants.
Driver: "I paid virtually, by cell phone."
Parking attendant: "That's OK, your parking fine is in your in-box."